Whereas analytics has a reputation for being rooted in the wizardry of algorithms and “pure math,” Southekal recast the practice as driven by finding the most relevant questions for a particular business and then using those questions – in conjunction with data – to gain insights. Without “visibility” into business goals and KPIs, analytics will not be valuable, he said: “A VP of an oil and gas company asked me, ‘Can machine learning and data analytics help me get more oil from the ground?’ The answer is no. To get more oil from the ground, you need a pump jack. But to get more value out of the pump jack, you need analytics, because it gives that kind of visibility into the factors that will help you get more value out of your pump jack, and ultimately get more value to the business.” Key Components of Analytics Southekal identified what he believes are the four building blocks of analytics: data, algorithms, ethics, and assumptions. “It’s not just about technology,” he expl...